The Congress of South African Trade Unions on Wednesday elected S’dumo Dlamini to take over as president after the sacking of its embattled president, Willie Madisha. This was announced by Cosatu general secretary Zwelinzima Vavi at a press briefing after the union’s three-day central executive committee meeting in Johannesburg.
The flag of Nepal’s 240-year-old Shah dynasty was taken down from the main palace in Kathmandu on Thursday after legislators abolished the world’s last Hindu monarchy, officials said. "The royal flag was replaced by Nepal’s national flag inside the palace on Thursday morning," a palace official said on condition of anonymity.
South African Reserve Bank Governor Tito Mboweni said on Wednesday that the task of the central bank is to maintain inflation in the 3% to 6% target band, and with CPIX (consumer inflation less mortgage costs) now at 10,4%, "drastic" measures are required. "This is way above the upper limit — you don’t have to be a genius to tell interest rates have to tighten," he said.
An Australian low-cost airline and a Canadian luxury resort and casino developer have launched two ambitious projects that aim to revolutionise Vietnam’s fast-growing tourism industry. Jetstar, the budget offshoot of Australian carrier Qantas, teamed up with Vietnam’s Pacific Airlines to launch Jetstar Pacific on Friday.
With food price hikes affecting all consumers and particularly the poor, it is crucial to understand the pricing when working out what measures can be taken — and where the Competition Commission fits in. High food prices must be seen in the context of the liberalisation of agricultural markets in the mid-1990s and the expectation that with competition there would be greater efficiency and, ultimately, lower prices for consumers.
Renaissance Medical Scheme was placed under curatorship last week after a report showed it is insolvent and more than R30million in the red. The industry regulatory authority, the Council for Medical Schemes, applied for the scheme to be put under curatorship to protect its 30Â 000 beneficiaries.
Sadly, it now looks obvious why everyone is calling for President Thabo Mbeki to step down. No one has presented a more compelling argument for the case than the man himself, limping from blunder to blunder somewhere off in the wings of our national life.
The arrest this week of Congolese rebel leader and former vice-president Jean-Pierre Bemba on charges of crimes against humanity could be a significant blow for the leaders of myriad armed groups that terrorise the continent. Bemba was arrested on Sunday by Belgian authorities acting on an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
Could the visuals have stoked the attacks?
An American journalism teacher visiting SA has been horrified at the broadcast and publication of xenophobic violence. It clashes with her home experience where audiences are sheltered by the media.
The Competition Commission on Wednesday laid perjury charges against the managing executive of Adcock Ingram Critical Care at the Sunnyside police station in Pretoria. The commission said it had laid charges against Arthur Barnett for allegedly ”committing the common law crime of perjury”. He allegedly ”knowingly” provided false information to the commission.